$Bitcoin price drop below $75K exposes the demand fracture behind crypto’s $941M liquidation wave$ $Bitcoin price drop below $75K exposes the demand fracture behind crypto’s $941M liquidation wave$

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Bitcoin price drop below $75K exposes the demand fracture behind crypto’s $941M liquidation wave – Crypto News

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May 24, 2026

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Bitcoin’s price has dropped below $75,000 for the first time since mid-April, triggering a broad decline across digital assets.

Data from CryptoSlate showed that the largest digital asset fell more than 3% over the past 24 hours to as low as $74,255 after trading above $77,000 earlier in the session. The move placed Bitcoin back at a price zone last seen in April, when the market was still recovering from a wider risk-asset reset.

The decline also spread across the broader crypto market, where Ethereum fell about 5% to roughly $2,065, while Hyperliquid, one of the stronger performers in recent weeks, dropped more than 7% to about $55.

Other top digital assets, including XRP, Cardano, BNB, Solana, and Dogecoin, also traded lower as selling pressure widened across the market.

The reversal came despite recent regulatory momentum around the CLARITY Act, which had helped bolster expectations that a clearer US market structure could attract more capital to the sector.

Instead, market data showed that traders have shifted attention back to demand, fund flows, and leverage after Bitcoin failed to hold the $75,000 level.

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BTC spot demand weakens as ETFs turn into sellers

Market analysts attribute the pullback to a combination of technical exhaustion and a sharp reduction in institutional appetite.

CryptoQuant head of research Julio Moreno said Bitcoin spot demand is contracting at the fastest pace since Jan. 10, pointing to a weakening base for the market as the price tested a critical technical zone.

That pressure is evident in US spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have recorded more than $2 billion in cumulative outflows over the past two weeks. The withdrawals mark one of the fastest two-week exits from the funds and remove a source of demand that had helped stabilize Bitcoin during earlier phases of the rally.

The shift in ETF flows is important because spot funds had served as one of the main channels for institutional allocation into Bitcoin.

When those funds receive inflows, issuers typically need to acquire Bitcoin to support the issuance of new shares. When the funds post outflows, that support can reverse, leaving the market more dependent on direct spot buying and derivatives positioning.

Ultimately, Bitcoin’s latest pullback came after the asset met resistance near levels that had previously capped rebounds.

With spot demand weakening and ETF flows turning negative, the move above $77,000 lacked the follow-through needed to sustain a move above the $75,000 threshold.

Nearly $1 billion in positions liquidated

The fall below $75,000 triggered a sharp liquidation wave across crypto derivatives markets, where traders using leverage were forced out as prices moved through key levels.

Data from Coinglass shows that $941 million in derivative positions were liquidated across the market within 24 hours, affecting more than 161,200 individual traders as prices sliced through key support levels.

Bitcoin-linked contracts were the hardest hit, enduring more than $378 million in liquidations. Ethereum derivatives traders saw approximately $255 million in positions forcefully closed.